Latest News

Apple Pay signs up UK banks but Barclays hanging back

Barclays is the only major UK bank missing from the launch of Apple Pay in the UK.

From next month, users with iPhone 6, iPhone 6 Plus or Apple Watch in the UK will be able to use the NFC mobile payments chip inside their iPhone’s to use Apple Pay.

Apple announced yesterday a host of partners already signed up, including:

American Express

First Direct

HSBC

Nationwide

NatWest

Royal Bank of Scotland

Santander

Ulster Bank

Of the ‘big four’ British banks Barclays has not yet signed up. Barclays’ Twitter support has come under fire from customers and has issued the following statement, which shows that all hope is not lost for Apple Pay for iPhone users who bank with Barclays.

Thanks for your tweets this evening. We can assure you that we’ve been talking with Apple about how our customers could use Apple Pay in addition to our existing mobile and payment services, and that these talks remain constructive.

Barclays is effectively saying that negotiations and talks are still in progress. Barclays have already invested heavily in its own mobile payment system, Barclays Pingit. Pingit, rather than using NFC, works on the premise where you can send and receive cash by using just a mobile phone number to identify the other person. It is likely that Barclays will announce support soon as overall support for Apple Pay from other UK banks is strong, and of course many customers who have iPhone’s will want to access the service.

Apple Pay in the UK will launch with over 250,000 merchants.

Apple Pay will also become integrated into the new Wallet app.

The following have announced they will support Apple Pay, but are ‘coming soon’ which likely means they will miss the July launch date. At the keynote, Apple says the following banks will be onboard by the autumn.

Bank of Scotland

Halifax

Lloyds

M&S Bank

mbna

TSB

Expect more banks, supermarkets like, Tesco’s, Sainsbury’s, Asda, Waitrose and Morrisons, with other high st retail stores and merchant partners to be announced in the coming weeks and months.

Show Press Release

Apple Pay Coming to the UK

Bringing the Easy, Secure & Private Way to Pay to Customers Internationally

SAN FRANCISCO — June 8, 2015 — Apple® today announced that starting next month, Apple Pay™ will be available to customers in the UK, bringing them the easy, secure and private way to pay. Whether buying groceries, grabbing coffee, picking up lunch or taking the Tube, UK shoppers will soon be able to make many of their daily purchases with Apple Pay. At launch, over 250,000 locations will accept Apple Pay, with support from eight of the UK’s most established banks, across all of the major credit and debit card networks.

“Apple Pay has quickly become a big part of millions of users’ everyday shopping routines, providing a simpler, faster and more secure way to pay,” said Eddy Cue, Apple’s senior vice president of Internet Software and Services. “We’re thrilled to bring Apple Pay to the UK with support at launch from the most popular banks, an incredible roster of merchants and many of our users’ favorite apps.”

Paying in stores or within apps has never been easier. In stores, shopping with Apple Pay is fast and there are no extra steps — simply hold your iPhone® near the contactless reader while keeping a finger on Touch ID™. With Apple Watch™ just double click the side button and hold the face up to the contactless reader to make a purchase right from your wrist. Shopping in apps with Apple Pay can be as simple as the touch of a finger, so iPhone and iPad® users can pay for physical goods and services, including apparel, electronics, health and beauty products, tickets and more.

Security and privacy are at the core of Apple Pay. In the UK, users will soon receive all the benefits of protecting personal information, transaction data, and credit and debit card information with the industry-leading security Apple Pay brings. When adding a credit or debit card, the actual card numbers are not stored on the device, nor on Apple servers. Instead, a unique Device Account Number is assigned, encrypted and securely stored in the Secure Element on your device, and each transaction is authorized with a one-time unique dynamic security code.

Apple Pay will support UK credit and debit cards from American Express, MasterCard and Visa Europe, issued by many of the UK’s most popular banks, including first direct, HSBC, NatWest, Nationwide Building Society, Royal Bank of Scotland, Santander and Ulster Bank. Other major issuing banks will follow by this fall, including Bank of Scotland, Coutts, Halifax, Lloyds Bank, MBNA, M&S Bank and TSB Bank.

“As part of our goal to be number one, we are absolutely focused on giving our customers the best and most innovative experience possible,” said Ross McEwan, CEO of Royal Bank of Scotland. “Whether on the high street, in a small shop or on the go within apps, Apple Pay offers a simple and secure way to pay. We are pleased to be among the first UK banks to offer this service to our customers.”

Starting in July, iPhone 6, iPhone 6 Plus and Apple Watch users will be able to make purchases anywhere contactless payments are accepted. In addition to the 39 Apple Stores in the UK, leading locations for everyday shopping that will accept Apple Pay include Boots UK, BP, Costa Coffee, Dune, JD Sports, KFC UK & Ireland, Liberty, LIDL, Marks & Spencer (M&S), McDonald’s UK, Nando’s, New Look, Post Office, Pret A Manger, SPAR, Starbucks, SUBWAY stores, Wagamama and Waitrose. Transport for London will also accept Apple Pay, so you can use your iPhone or Apple Watch to pay for your travel or daily commute.

“We are proud to be one of the first retailers to introduce Apple Pay at our stores across the UK. Whether customers are enjoying our special food range or our clothing collections, our early introduction of Apple Pay will provide them with a seamless and secure way of checking out,” said Marc Bolland, CEO of Marks & Spencer.

In apps, checkout is simple and there is no need to manually fill out lengthy account forms or repeatedly type in shipping and billing information. Apps that will accept Apple Pay in the UK include Addison Lee, Airbnb, Argos, Booking.com, British Airways, Domino’s, easyJet, Hailo, HotelTonight, hungryhouse, JD Sports, Just Eat, lastminute.com, Miss Selfridge, Ocado, Stubhub, thetrainline.com, Top 10, Topshop, Uncover, Vueling, YPlan, Zalando and Zara, among others. When paying for goods and services within apps, Apple Pay is compatible with iPhone 6, iPhone 6 Plus, iPad Air® 2 and iPad mini™ 3.

Apple revolutionized personal technology with the introduction of the Macintosh in 1984. Today, Apple leads the world in innovation with iPhone, iPad, the Mac and Apple Watch. Apple’s three software platforms — iOS, OS X and watchOS — provide seamless experiences across all Apple devices and empower people with breakthrough services including the App Store, Apple Music, Apple Pay and iCloud. Apple’s 100,000 employees are dedicated to making the best products on earth, and to leaving the world better than we found it.

Apple, the Apple logo, Apple Pay, iPhone, Touch ID, Apple Watch, iPad, iPad Air and iPad mini are trademarks of Apple. Other company and product names may be trademarks of their respective owners.

Dave Thornton

Senior Editor

Senior Editor
Been involved in technology for many years, more than I care to remember. Live in Dundee, Scotland. I like Android, Windows Phone OS, BlackBerry OS and iOS, and love writing about all things techie. Currently have a Honor 6+, Elephone P6000, Nexus 5, Chrombook C720, HTC One M7, Nokia Lumina 625, Microsoft Lumia 435, Blackberry Q10, HTC Hero and iPad mini